Current Award Winners

Dr Aaron Low is a chemical and materials engineer whose career has focused on process innovation and molecular filtration in the wine industry. He holds a PhD from the University of Waikato and is currently the Chief Technical Officer at amaea based in Hamilton.

This award recognises Dr Low’s development of a new method for cold stabilisation of wine which facilitates the rapid removal of excess potassium bitartrate. This new technology, which will be available to wineries in New Zealand, Australia, USA and Canada in the very near future, reduces the timeframe for the stabilisation process to a matter of minutes or hours as opposed to the 7-14 days required for traditional processes, while also reducing the energy demand by up 80%.

Previously Dr Low was an integral part of a team that developed and commercialised technology to remove smoke taint from wine which occurs when vineyards are exposed to smoke from wildfires prior to harvest, allowing winemakers to recover value from a harvest that might otherwise have been downgraded or lost altogether.

As a passionate inventor and commercial innovator, Aaron is focused on delivering both performance and sustainability by combining technical know-how and industry insights to tackle industrial and environmental challenges.